Glanbia is on course to achieve forecast earnings per share in the current year, the group's incoming managing director, Mr John Moloney, said at its annual general meeting in Kilkenny yesterday.

The biggest issue in the first five months of the year was the foot-and-mouth outbreak in Britain, which closed Glanbia's pig slaughtering there for five weeks. "We managed to reduce our cost base and open a supply line from Ireland, so we kept our customers. We are out of Japan on pig meat, but as a consequence we have sold more in Europe," Mr Moloney said. Glanbia's Irish and US operations were performing well, he reported. "We are quietly pleased with the development in the US cheese market, where prices have improved and we believe that progress will be sustained through the rest of the year."

The £300 million sterling (€496.5 million) deal for the food services company in Britain to supply hotel group Compass with chilled foods over five years was a considerable boost to the UK operation, he said. "There is a strong focus on tighter cash management and debt reduction has been satisfactory to date," he said. This was the most upbeat presentation from Glanbia's management in the last three years and analysts now say it has plumbed the depths and is on the way up again.

During the meeting, shareholder Mr Tom Hickey, of Stradbally, Co Waterford, asked if the board had advice on the legality of deducting 1p a gallon from suppliers, to be put into a revolving fund to clear the £30 million debt in the co-operative, which controls 55 per cent of the shares in the plc. Mr Ciaran Bolger for Glanbia said the milk price was a matter for the board to decide. Several shareholders, including Mr Hickey, objected to the deduction, which they said was being done without their permission. They said they would take their own legal advice.